The Professionals Poster

The Professionals (1966)

Action | Western 
Rayting:   7.4/10 14.2K votes
Country: USA
Language: English | Spanish
Release date: 22 December 1966

An arrogant Texas millionaire hires four adventurers to rescue his kidnapped wife from a notorious Mexican bandit.

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User Reviews

bog-23 20 January 2010

Still one of the best movies ever made --The Professionals is a continuous fusillade of memorable lines, including several immortal quotes. This is a tough-guy movie for thinking tough guys, with an amazing cast of screen icons.

Most of the men were WWII vets. Lee Marvin was a decorated hero. Woody Strode was a decathlete and football star. The stunts are all real and believable in scale, with Burt Lancaster performing many of his own.

Maurice Jarre's score is definitive of its genre. Conrad Hall's cinematography is smart and dynamic, making great use of breathtaking locations. But it is the tough guy ethic in the treatise that makes it work. I haven't read Frank O'Rourke's novel, but Richard Brook's screenplay is worth returning to again and again. Like a favorite book, it continues to gain resonance.

The Professionals is a stunningly-photographed high adventure and lyrical tragedy. Not everybody gets this film, but it remains a masterpiece.

myschrec 28 July 2003

Fmovies: This is a great western... at a time when Hollywood audiences were less interested in westerns. It also developed the theme of moral ambiguity found in the Sergio Leone/Clint Eastwood "Man With No Name" westerns and The Wild Bunch. Lee Marvin (fresh from his Oscar performance in Cat Ballou) shows once again how strong an actor he is ... and how well he matches up with Burt Lancaster (with his oscar for Elmer Gantry six years earlier). Jack Palance is once again a villain with a winning smile. In addition to the excellent acting and exciting action scenes, the film makes good use of the horses, the train, the weaponry ... as well as the subplot about the old revolutionaries meeting once again after many years. In the end, the plot has a nice twist ... and our heroes must make a moral choice. The film compares favorably to the best John Ford westerns, plus it has colorful scenery and a great sense of humor. You should definitely watch the "widescreen" version if you can. Richard Brooks was nominated for Oscars for directing and writing.

ma-cortes 14 December 2009

Based on novel by Frank O'Rourke titled ¨A mule for the Marquese¨ and screen-written with fine eye by Richard Brooks ; it deals about some aging mercenaries who get chance redeem themselves . A wealthy magnate named Grant (Ralph Bellamy) employs a group of expert mercenaries, as the title characters, to rescue his wife (Claudia Cardinale), from the clutches of Raza (Jack Palance)who allegedly abducted her . The bunch (Woody Strode, Robert Ryan) is led by Fardan(Lee Marvin) and Dodworth(Burt Lancaster). The two mercenaries (Marvin,Lancaster) and Raza (Palance) had previously fought in Mexican Revolution and entering in City of Mexico along with Pancho Villa and Emilio Zapata.

A kidnapping and its rescue is the subject of this stunning adventure , an epic in every sense of word. Exciting, funny and well acted , especially by Burt Lancaster as tough soldier-of-fortune. It was deservedly nominated to Academy Award for direction, screenplay, cinematography and score. Photographed in Technicolor and Panavison by Conrad Hall in Valley of Fire State Park and its Coyote Pass and Deah Valley (Nevada) where was built a Mexican headquarter for the Mexican guerrilla. Exceptional soundtrack by Maurice Jarre, now classic, with Mexican and military music. Directed and screen-played with magnificent style by Richard Brooks (Elmer Gantry, In cold blood, lord Jim) who subsequently directed another good Western titled ¨Bite the bullet¨ with Gene Hackman and Candice Bergen .The ¨Professionals¨ is an authentic must see, not to be missed for buffs of the genre. A successful movie during its theatrical release because of its awesome acting, dialog, score are world class.

mdewey 30 January 2005

The Professionals fmovies. I just recently revisited this great Western classic and rediscovered why I think this is the best of its genre. The setting, the plot/subplots, the casting, the writing are in a class unto themselves. First of all, what else can you say about the match-up of Lee Marvin and Burt Lancaster? Two phenomenal actors with a great screenplay and story line to propel their already lofty skills to an even higher level. The supporting cast of Jack Palance, Claudia C., Woody Strode, Robert Ryan, etc. contributes to the overall storyline by portraying their individual roles, each entirely different, with skill, depth and emotion.

What starts out as a fairly self-explanatory rescue and retrieve mission ends up getting increasingly complicated. As Burt Lancaster's character noted, "there's something a little dicey about this arrangement"! As the melodrama ensues, the inevitable capture and retrieval occurs and the tension mounts as the chase begins.

When the retrieval part of the mission nears its ending, the pace slows down to where the principal combatants, Jack Palance and Burt Lancaster, render their philosophical reasons for their respective actions. Palance, the Mexican revolutionary, tells of the revolution being like the goddess at the inception and like a whore as time wears on, where lust slowly overshadows love and passion surmounts compassion. But this time, he says, "I'm on this mission for love". Burt's reply of "I'm in it for the money, what else?", has the typical mercenary ring to it, but you get the feeling it may not portray his true feelings. This depiction of revolution(s), at a time (late 60's) when revolutionary zeal was the current political motif, sheds a remarkably lucid view: what does it all mean in the end?

But true to the Code of the Professional, Burt, Lee M. et al, must fulfill their obligations to the letter of the contract. And when you see the film in its entirety, you will see how they achieve that obligation and may be surprised at the final fulfillment!

Poseidon-3 29 December 2003

Set in the aftermath of the Mexican revolution, this action drama concerns the rescue of a Mexican lady (Cardinale) who is married to a rich, older, white man (Bellamy.) She has been taken from her American home back down to Mexico by notorious outlaw Palance. Bellamy hires a motley crew of mercenaries to retrieve Cardinale, promising them $10,000 each upon her return. The crew is led by tough as nails Marvin and includes free-wheeling dynamite-man Lancaster, sensitive rustler Ryan and archery expert Strode. This foursome sets out across punishing desert terrain to reach Cardinale and bring her back to the U.S. border. The job is at least as difficult as they expected and getting back to the border is as hard, if not harder, than getting to Palance's lair was. The film has an exceptional ensemble cast of pros. The members of the rescue team form an uneasy affection for one another. Stern Marvin and toothy, off-the-cuff Lancaster make a great pair. Ryan adds years of presence to his smallish role and Strode is his usual imposing physical entity. Palance is always a great villain and has some decent moments here. Bellamy does a nice job with his sketchy character. Cardinale is amazingly curvy and attractive even in the dusty surroundings. There is also a healthy dose of strong action, much of it taking place in the impressive domain of Palance. Dots of humor along the way relieve the tension. Time hasn't been particularly kind to Maurice Jarre's offbeat score and the film could have been just a tad shorter, but overall it is an interesting and absorbing action film.

A_Roode 3 September 2006

There are so many remarkable things about 'The Professionals.' Conrad Hall was the Director of Photography and was nominated for an Oscar -- he didn't win but he should have. The 1967 Oscar ceremony threw as many awards as it could to 'A Man For All Seasons.' I love watching big, beautiful, widescreen westerns and this is one of the best shot. Hall's use of camera filters, his incredible dust storm and his location scouting were all impeccable. I don't pretend to understand the mechanics of camera photography. I do know, however, when something looks gorgeous. 'The Professionals' is a stunningly beautiful film and it is a shame that it doesn't get a greater audience today.

The second remarkable thing is the quality of the cast. The top seven actors and actresses billed were top grade lead or supporting actors at one point in their careers: Burt Lancaster, Lee Marvin, Robert Ryan, Woody Strode, Jack Palance, Claudia Cardinale and Ralph Bellamy. It would be interesting to try and add up the number of Oscar nominated pictures and performances that the above group compiled throughout their careers. Even if these seven weren't enough, they get wonderful support from the gorgeous Maria Gomez and reliably ubiquitous Jorge Martinez De Hoyos. Jorge Martinez De Hoyos is a classic Mexican "Hey! It's That Guy!" supporting actor and I always welcome seeing him in a picture. He makes much out of a minor part as the goat keeper who wants to 'help.' The lead performances are terrific and well written. This may well be my favorite Woody Strode performance. He (as seemed to happen for him) doesn't get a lot to say, but the value of his character to the group of four professionals is unquestioned and undeniable. When Marvin wants an assault to look like an attack by the Federales, Lancaster may be the guy with the dynamite, but it is Strode firing explosive arrows that makes it happen. Some of his best work where he is a featured player. And I love that when the question of race is brought up by Bellamy, Marvin snorts with contempt that he would have trouble working with a consummate professional of any colour. Strode doesn't lead, but this was a very positive part and showed white and black relying on each other to get a mutual job done. Of the other leads I would add that Lancaster has the best part (much of the humour, action and girls), Marvin is amazing, and Claudia Cardinale is so stunning a beauty it hurts to look at her.

A tougher part was for Robert Ryan. He was maybe too good of an actor for a part that wasn't well written. Ryan is game but I thought his part as the horse handler wasted him. In his later years Robert Ryan was quite sick and he was sick during this production. I don't think he was the problem though. His character is sick for much of the film but as a person, one gets the impression that Ryan was still quite robust. His character doesn't seem to fit in as well or have anything to do. He is adrift. Maybe part of it comes from playing a character who values animal life over human. I say again though that in this movie he is good, but not right for the part.

'The Professionals' is an adventure film and Western filmed in the style of 'The Magnificent Seven' and a model itself for 'The Wild Bunch' which followed. It straddles the worlds of old Western and new Western. It has a moral ambiguity and over-arching plot which makes me think of the film as a kind of Western/Film-noir. When you look at the

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